Flames in the Sky
by TheIrishShipperholic
Summary: AU. When a triple homicide rocks NYC and Chicago, three teams - the C.S.I.: NY team, Castle & Beckett and the Intelligence Unit - must join forces to catch the killer before it's too late.
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** Flames in the Sky  
><strong>Author:<strong> Dylan/dylanasurus and Katie/TheIrishShipperholic  
><strong>Disclaimer:<strong> I own nothing but this story and my original characters  
><strong>ShowMovie/Book:** Castle, Crime Scene Investigation: New York and Chicago P.D. (crossover)  
><strong>CouplesCategory:** Castle/Beckett, Hank/Addison, Mac/Stella, Danny/Erin, Adam/Abby, Jo/Olinsky (Chicago P.D.), Danny/Erin Lindsay, Lindsay/TBD, and others mixed through out. Alternate Universe (AU)  
><strong>Rating:<strong> Mature, for violence, language, sexual scenes and periodical alcoholic consumption  
><strong>Summary:<strong> AU. When a triple homicide rocks NYC and Chicago, the C.S.I.: NY team with help from Castle & Beckett must join forces with the CPD team to catch the killer before it's too late.  
><strong>Author's Note:<strong> Dylan and I are very pleased to be able to work together. We both enjoy each others' writing, so we hope that you enjoy ours combined!

**Chapter One**

**New York**

The girl whimpered as she scooted back further away from the person holding a gun on her, ignoring the metal floor of the bus. "Please don't kill me. I'll do anything!" she whimpered.

"It's too late for that," the person replied in a low growl. He advanced on her, forcing her to her feet then put the gun at her forehead and shot her point blank. She sank to the floor, lifeless.

Detective Kate Beckett rolled over in bed and sighed as her phone kept ringing. Realizing that it was actually something important, important meaning work, she grabbed her phone and answered it. "Beckett." Her voice was still filled with sleep as she spoke. The person on the other end informed of a murder and she threw her head back on the pillow. She had been hoping to sleep in, but that plan obviously had just gone out the door. Hanging up, she swung her feet over the edge of the bed. She hit Castle lightly but hard enough to wake him up. He groaned before realizing what was going on and that they had caught a case. Neither person wanted to get up at 6am on their day off.

The pair pulled up to scene, to find Esposito and Ryan already there. "Okay guys, what do we got?" Kate yelled as she walked under the yellow crime scene tape, closely followed by Castle.

"Female. Gunshot wound to the head. Close range. Looks like a mob hit." Esposito spoke as Ryan led them over to the victim. Kate shook her head; she never understood how people could do such a thing.

"Do we know what choice of weapon?" she then asked.

"Don't know yet," Ryan said. "We're still working to get the bullet out." He nodded over at Lanie working to get the victim into the back of the M.E. van.

Kate shook her head as she directed her attention towards Lanie. Of course this wasn't going to be easy. It never was. It was days like today that made Kate want to scream in frustration. Not just because she was frustrated with the job, but more frustrated with the amount of cases that were suspected mob hits and had gone cold. The fact that the pile of mob hits on her desk kept growing by the day was enough to make anyone want to scream.

**In Chicago**…  
>A couple holding tightly onto each other backed away from the gun aimed at them. "What do you want from us, man? We don't have any money!" the guy said.<p>

"I don't care about money," the masked man said as he came closer, put the gun to the girl's head and shot her point blank. The guy watched helplessly as his girlfriend fell to the floor of the abandoned school bus then began to sob.

"You killed her, man! You killed my girlfriend!" he yelled then advanced toward the gunman, grabbing the arm that had the weapon and began to try and wrestle it away.

The young man then ran out of the bus, trying not to cry at what he had just seen. Running as fast as his feet would carry him, he ran down the streets of Chicago before coming across a police station. He walked in, covered in his girlfriend's blood, the person at the door looked at him in shock. The man looked at him with sorrow covering his face as he spoke. "Can I help you?"

The young man sighed before speaking. "Yes. A-A guy just killed my girlfriend. I didn't see his face or anything but I can please talk to a detective or someone?" Looking as if he were about to cry, the young man's voice cracked as he explained what had just happened.

Desk Sergeant Trudy Platt let her mouth crease into a concerned frown as she witnessed this young man talking to Officer Roman so she lifted her hand and snapped her fingers. "Officer Roman, can I speak to you for a moment?" she asked in a firm tone that didn't leave time for questioning her.

Officer Sean Roman did as he was told. "Yes, Sgt. Platt?"

"What is it that that young man needs?"

"He needs to talk to a detective, m…Sgt. Platt," Sean stuttered out in response.

Trudy nodded upstairs. "Go find Detective Halstead or Ruzek," she told him. Sean headed up the stairs to the Intelligence Unit part of the building, where he found the two male detectives sitting and conversing with Erin Lindsay and Kim Burgess respectively. Clearing his throat got the attention of Jay and Erin, and the latter of the two stood up to walk over to Sean.

"What's goin' on, Officer Roman?" she asked in her husky voice.

**In New York City**

Kate had wandered into the 13th Precinct, a specific task in mind. She walked with a purpose, her feet carrying her towards the desk of Detective Don Flack. She looked at him with a no nonsense type of look as she placed her hands on his desk to get his attention.

"Can I help you ma'am?" Flack looked up from his paperwork, one eyebrow raised in questioning as he spoke.

Kate looked at him and slid her badge across the desk. "Yeah, I'm Detective Kate Beckett, 12th Precinct. I was told you may have information on a case I'm working." She was professional, no-nonsense as she spoke to Flack. She just wanted answers and she wanted to catch this guy as soon as she could.

"We should probably go see Mac," he said, standing up and leading her out of the Precinct, heading uptown to the Crime Scene Investigation building, where he led her inside and going up to his boss' office.

Kate followed him to the crime lab, her mind running wild with questions. "Can I ask why we are going to see this Mac person?" She ran up next to him, her eyebrows lifting as she spoke.

Flack shook his head. How could she have worked for NYPD and not know who Mac Taylor was? "We're going to see a friend of mine. His name is Mac Taylor. He's head of the Crime Lab. He'll have the answers to the questions you have."

Kate nodded then followed him into the building, where Flack used one knuckle to tap on the glass window of the office that belonged to Mac. He had a smirk on his face because he noticed his sometimes boss making out with his wife, Stella Bonasera Taylor. Inside the office, Mac eased Stella off of his lap then stood up and walked over to open the door. "Flack, what's this about?" Mac asked.

"Mac, this is Detective Kate Beckett, from the 12th Precinct. She wanted to ask some questions about that case that was brought in earlier," Flack replied.

Kate smiled politely at Mac as she tried to not laugh at the scene she had just witnessed. She knew how it went, getting caught by someone at work in that moment. "Hi." Kate stuck her hand out to shake the older detective's hand. You could almost tell she was suppressing giggles.

Mac shook her hand, smiling at the younger woman as Stella stood behind him smiling as well. "How can I help you today, Detective Beckett?" He led her into his office followed by Stella and Flack wanting information on the case as well, even though they had all the information they needed.

"I was hoping you could catch me up on what you know about the school bus homicide case," Kate said as she took a seat across from him.

"Ah, yes. We haven't learned much, but two teams are better than nothing, am I right?" Mac said with a smile as he wrapped his arms around Stella when she resumed her earlier spot in his lap.

"That is true, Detective Taylor," Kate said with a slight smirk.

Flack let out a small laugh at the smirk Kate had on her face. It reminded him of Jess. The smirk she used to give him when he'd make dirty jokes, but that was long before she started joining in with the jokes and being his partner in crime. "Boss, is it okay if she works alongside our team?" he then asked after clearing his throat.

"Yeah, the more help the better." Mac gave Kate a smile and a nod of his head as he spoke.

Kate looked at him, returning the smile before standing up. "As long as you don't mind my team helping yours, I'm on board."

Before Mac could reply, Kate's cell phone chimed with a text message and she pulled it out of her jacket pocket, reading the text from Rick. Then she responded with '_Come by the Crime lab, if you and Alexis have time; you can meet the head investigator for the other team we'll be working with._'

'_I'll be there soon,_' he responded back and Kate smiled then looked over at Mac. "I hope you don't mind, but one of the people from my team is on his way to meet you in person."

**Back in Chicago**…  
>Hank Voight had just dropped his granddaughter off when his cell phone rang and he pulled it out of his pocket. "This is Voight," he said upon answering the call.<p>

"Boss, we've got a new case," the voice of Antonio Dawson said through the phone line.

"I'm on my way," Hank said in a gruff voice before hanging up and driving away from his daughter and son-in-law's home. He drove quickly to the location; putting his car in park and turning the ignition off before climbing out, walking up to Antonio and Alvin Olinsky. "What have we got?"

"Triple homicide and it's not pretty," Alvin explained as he, Antonio and Hank walked up to the abandoned school bus, climbing the steps onto the vehicle.

The three older policemen walked up to where the medical examiner was still taking photographs. Hank examined the scene for a few minutes before declaring, "So, the killer shoots the girl at close range, fights with someone that was obviously on the bus for the weapon, and then that someone runs off?"

"Sounds accurate," Antonio piped in, nodding his head. "But the better question is …where did the killer go?"

_That was a really good question. Where **did** the killer go?_

**Author's Note:** Where DID the killer go? Find out soon!


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

**New York**

Kate had just finished introductions with the C.S.I. team and Castle when her phone started ringing. "This is Detective Beckett." She let out a heavy sigh as the person on the other end of the line told her that there was another school bus murder and where it was located. "Okay. We'll be right there." She hung up and turned her head toward Mac, giving him a sympathetic look. "We have yet another one. Want to tag along?"

Mac nodded. "Let me go and get Stella," he responded, turning around to head toward the lab office where his wife was.

Kate gave a quick nod of her head as Mac walked off to get his wife. Turning her attention towards Castle and Detective Flack, Kate sighed heavily at the prospect of having a serial killer on their hands. "So…" Her voice trailed off as Mac and Stella came walking back over towards the group.

"Let's get going," Mac said and the group headed off to the location given out, where they met up with medical examiner Sid. "Sid, what have you got for us?"

Sid looked up from the body and gave a quick nod of his head. "Straight business as always, Mac. Not much. I have to get her back to the morgue. But right now, I'm going to say she was killed sometime between 3 and 7am and a gunshot wound to the head is cause of death."

Mac nodded. "Keep us updated."

"Will do, boss," Sid said before he loaded the victim into the back of the medical examiner's van.

After he was gone, Mac turned to look over his shoulder at his wife when she gently grasped his hand. He turned slowly around to face her completely then brought his hands up to frame her cheeks.

Kate stood in the middle of the scene trying to take in what had happened there. She wouldn't admit it but it scared her that a serial killer was roaming the city.

**In Chicago**…  
>"Get back to me when you have actual evidence," Hank said, hanging up the phone abruptly. He let out a sigh then glanced over when Detective Erin Lindsay appeared. "What is it, Erin?"<p>

"There's someone who wants to talk to you," she said, pointing over her shoulder. Standing up, Hank followed the female detective out of his office and watched as Erin walked over to the young woman that stood hesitant in the spot just above the stairs.

Erin wrapped a gentle arm around the girl's shoulders and brought her toward Hank. "It's okay. Go ahead and tell him," she said softly to the girl.

"I …I saw what happened, Sergeant Voight. And I didn't see the k-killer's eyes, but I could see a trace of a scar," the girl said in a hesitant voice, the tone a whisper.

"How long was the scar?" he asked, nodding over to the girlfriend of Detective Jay Halstead. Redhead Harley Thomas grabbed the sketchbook and opened it to a new page then held her pencil poised above the paper while waiting for the girl to describe the killer's face/scar.

The girl described the killers face and scar as Harley Thomas drew. The girl had reverted inwards and stopped talking suddenly. It was too much for her and she just stood there with a blank look on her face as Harley stood there, trying to get more information about the killer. The redhead then walked over to gently place her hand onto the girl's arm. "Perhaps we could take this into the break room and do it one on one?" she asked in a soft murmur. The girl nodded and followed Harley into the break room, which Harley closed the door to so that they wouldn't be interrupted. "Now …tell me more about the scar. Where was it?"

"On his cheek, just below his eye," the girl replied, hugging herself tightly as she began to rock back and forth, silent tears flowing down her cheeks. "I'm not going to be arrested for this, am I?"

"What makes you ask that?" Harley said as she continued to sketch away, glancing occasionally over at the teenager.

The teenager rocked in the chair and stared at Harley. "I…I just don't want to…to get in trouble. I won't right?" She sat there, arms hugging her legs to her chest and crying. It was just too much to take in at the moment.

Harley put aside her sketchbook. "Honey, you helping us by describing the suspect will help the police. You're far from getting in trouble. Come here," she said, opening her arms, which the teenager fell into and hugged the girl. "I once had to help the police with a case too. I didn't want to because I was so scared. But I got over my fear because the detective interviewing me was a woman. I just need you to trust me, okay? We all know what we're doing."

The girl nodded. "Okay," she whispered.

After they got the sketch drawn, Harley and the teenage girl left the break room. The redhead went over to hang the sketch that she'd ripped out of her book onto the white board then escorted the teenager out of the 21st precinct, to Officer Kim Burgess and Officer Sean Roman. "These officers will take you home, okay? Stay safe and remember to lock your doors," Harley told her, giving her a stern look and the girl nodded that she understood.

Once the patrol car had driven away, Harley turned to go back into the police station, heading for the locker rooms. Jay found her there, and sat down next to her on the bench she occupied, wrapping his arms around her and kissing the side of her head. "I love you. You know that, right?" he whispered and she nodded, tears falling down her cheeks. "And I can't wait to marry you and be a father."

"You do know what Voight will say, right?" she asked softly.

"Technically, it's not against the rules for us, Harley. You don't work here all the time," he reminded her.

**In New York**…

Kate stood in the 12th precinct looking at the white board. It wasn't going to talk to her. She knew this, but she hoped in the 20 minutes she had been staring at it, that it would tell her something. Give her some kind of answer. But no, it didn't and she let out a heavy sigh as she pulled a picture of the first victim off.

Flack and Castle walked up behind her and for the person who was always on alert, Kate didn't notice. "Hey, you. It's not going to talk." Castle put his arms around her as he spoke. Flack smiled at the two, knowing that he couldn't wait to get home to Jess that night. Pull her into a hug; just be grateful she was still alive. It was cases like these that made him thankful for everything he had.

"You know me so well," Kate murmured to him as she placed her hands over his arms over his around her.

"I do, and you're going to catch this killer. We all will," he said, kissing the side of her head.

"I hope so," she replied. Just then, the phone at Kate's desk rang and Castle relinquished his hold on her so that she could go over to answer it. "This is Detective Beckett," she said.

"Detective Beckett, this is Sergeant Hank Voight of the 21st District in Chicago. We finally have a sketch of the killer. Do you want me to fax it to you and, if so, what's the number?" Hank said through the phone.

Kate let out a sigh and nodded. "Yes, please. It's 212-555-0113." She recited the number off to Voight and rolled her eyes. It was going to be a long night.

**Author's Note:** It will be a long night, indeed! Hopefully this chapter answers a few questions for y'all and that you enjoy reading it!


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

**New York**

Adam Ross was many things, but one thing that he was an expert at was being a husband and father. Walking into the house he lived in with Abby and Ellie, he called out, "Abby, I'm home."

"I'm in the kitchen," she called back. He put his messenger bag down after removing it from around himself, heading toward where he had heard her voice and finding her and their toddler daughter.

"Daddy, you home!" Ellie said excitedly, running up to him and hugging him around his neck after he lifted her up into his arms to deliver a raspberry to her little cheek and making her squeal with laughter.

"I'm home, baby girl. How was your day? Did you give Momma any trouble?" he asked as he walked over to greet Abby with a brief kiss to her lips.

The little girl laughed and looked Adam, a bright smile on her face. "No wubble, momma." Adam laughed at the mispronunciation of 'trouble'.

Abby turned to face Adam and smiled as he kissed her. "Our day was wonderful. We ran some errands and little miss only had one tantrum."

"Good," Adam said as he turned to set Ellie down, watching as she scampered off to find something to do in the living room. He soon heard her babbling to herself and turned to his wife. "We got an unusual case today."

"Oh? Want to talk about it?" she asked, giving him a reassuring smile as she continued to cook.

"It's confusing, Abby. We have a killer out there, doing it in triple form, but there has only been one witness to come forward about seeing him. They're in Chicago," Adam replied.

Abby nodded slowly, eyebrows furrowing as her husband spoke. "Hmm.. That is very strange. So you working with CPD?"

Adam nodded and sat down on a bar stool that had been pushed up against the counter. "But don't you worry about it. My job, my worries." He smiled at Abby who had went back to making dinner.

"Yeah yeah yeah. I worry about you everyday." Abby let out a giggle as she stirred the spaghetti.

"And I worry about you. Did she really keep her tantrums to a minimum today?" Adam asked as he turned to pick up a cracker, munching on it as he asked.

"Yeah, she did. I was surprised too," she replied. "Have you talked to Danny at all?" She worried all the time about what her former brother-in-law was going through since Lindsay had up and left him with no warning, simply writing a note to him that said she wasn't ready to mend the past – or be a mom.

While Danny drowned in his sorrows, Abby had taken guardianship of her niece, who loved Adam to pieces. Currently, the 9 year old was upstairs in her room, listening to Taylor Swift. Adam shook his head. "Every time I do, he just shuts down. He doesn't even come into work anymore," he replied.  
>Abby sighed, she wished Lindsay hadn't walked out and truthfully, as much as she loved Danny, she wished he would get over himself and worry about how it was all effecting Lucy as well. "I miss the old Danny. He loved his work, his daughter, he just loved life."<p>

Adam nodded, Lucy seemed to be doing okay but she was so closed off most of the time it was hard to tell. He just wanted to help her and though she adored him, she was independent just like both her parents.

"Hopefully we'll get him back," he said softly, reaching for his wife to pull her close, his nose nuzzling her cheek with affection.

**Meanwhile**…  
>Erin Lindsay was just nodding off when she heard the chime come from her laptop and she reached out to pick it up from the coffee table in front of her couch in her apartment.<p>

MRCSIDAN: What are you up to?  
>EVILCPDERIN: Trying not to fall asleep, you?<br>MRCSIDAN: Not much. Just wishing I could see you in person.

Danny smiled as he typed and stared at Erin's profile picture. Hopefully one day they would be able to meet. While he still missed Lindsay, he was slowly getting himself back out there.

Erin had been completely devastated when her beloved high school sweetheart, James Evans, had been killed in combat while in Afghanistan and had been so inconsolable for weeks that James' sister Cassandra was unable to get her to respond to her phone calls or text messages. Now, her eyes drifted to the picture of them the last time they saw each other a year ago. It was one of her smiling at the camera, his back turned to the said camera as they embraced tightly, him kissing her temple as he gazed at her and her alone. Letting out a sigh, she turned back to the computer after using one hand to wipe at the tears she could feel blurring her vision.

EVILCPDERIN: Maybe one day…

**The Next Day**…  
>Erin arrived at work, keeping to herself as she thumbed through files that had been handed out for the case. Jay noticed her distant stature and walked over, tapping on her desk with the folder in his hands. "Hey, is everything okay?" he asked softly.<p>

"Yeah, everything is fine," she replied. "Why wouldn't it be?"

"Because I know his anniversary is coming up and I know how much meant to you, Erin," Jay replied.

"He did mean the world to me, Halstead, but the past is the past. I'm moving forward with my life," Erin told him.

"You didn't just lose someone you love, Erin. I lost him too. I lost someone I called 'brother' for many years, practically our entire lives," Jay said.

"I know. He told me. He died saving your life, but a part of me died when he did, Jay. And I'll never be able to stand here and look at you without seeing him," Erin said.

"He loved you! He was going to propose to you! He had a ring picked out and everything," Jay yelled at her. His raised voice got the attention of their fellow detectives and officers and Jay's own fiancé when they saw the two

"You have no idea what you're talking about. So leave me the hell alone," Erin spat out before turning to go over to the stairs, hurrying down them. Jay was about to go after her when his fiancé stopped him.

"Let me talk to her," she said in a soft voice. He nodded, giving her a quick kiss on the lips as she and Officer Kim Burgess went after Erin, finding her in the basement where the Cage was.

Burgess sat quietly right outside the Cage as Erin sat inside of it, her head in her hands. "Hey. You okay?" Burgess sat with her back up against the Cage hoping that Erin wouldn't end up ripping her head off.

"Yeah, I just...I miss James," Erin said, sniffling and wiping her eyes.

Burgess sighed heavily, the look in her eyes soft and caring. "I know. And you're going to yell at me for this but Jay didn't mean what he said okay? I know he didn't."

"I know he didn't mean it either, Burgess. He and James were like brothers and we both mourned for him," Erin said softly.

"It's okay to mourn someone that you love. But it's also good to find love again. I know that James would want that for you," Burgess said.

"I-I know. It's just hard. I don't know if I want to move on." Erin shook her head, she was still in extreme denial even though she had convinced herself she had moved on.

"Come on. Let's take a little field trip," Harley then spoke up, speaking in a soft voice.

"Where are we going?" Erin asked as the other two female officers led her out of the garage part of the precinct and out to Harley and Jay's shared SUV.

"First, we're going to the church to check up on any details that the suspect from earlier," the redhead told her.

"And then we're going to pay a visit to the cemetery," Burgess piped up.

Upstairs, Jay was starting to get worried about why his partner, his fiancé and Adam Ruzek's sometimes partner hadn't returned from the Cage downstairs and pulled out his cell phone to send a text to Harley. '**Where are you?**'

'**We're on our way to the church and cemetery. Don't tell Voight,**' was her response. Jay made a face then glanced over when Ruzek cleared his throat. "Where'd they go, Halstead?"

"Church and cemetery," was Jay's response. "I'm guessing they're paying a visit to James' grave." Jay shrugged.

**New York**  
>Danny Messer arrived at the crime lab while the sky was still pitch black. Things between him and Lindsay were still awry, and he barely talked to Lucy. He knew he should be a better father to her, but what could he say? "Sorry, Mommy decided that we weren't worth sticking around for?" Danny put his thoughts aside as he turned on the lights in his work area, illuminating it and making the moon outside that much brighter.<p>

Adam had stayed late that night, the case was big and he didn't really want to go home knowing Danny was working the night shift. He wanted to talk to Danny, see if maybe he could knock some sense into him. Adam was never one to stay angry at people but after Lindsay had up and left taking all but a note, Adam was left angry. Probably, angrier then he should have been but he hated seeing Danny like this and he hated the questions Lucy asked about why Lindsay left. He loved the 9 year old to death but just wished he could make everything better.

Mac sat in his office, staring at a computer screen. It was typical he didn't go home even though he was now married. He still suffered from insomnia and still put in long hours because of it. And he wanted to get this case closed. A light turned on in the office next to his and it caught his eye. Looking over, he saw Danny in the office and he shook his head. Lindsay had up and left and Danny had become self centered. Not that he meant too, but he had left Lucy to try to and fend for herself. And now he barely talked to his own daughter. Mac knew that this was life, and he knew you couldn't do anything but roll with the punches but he still didn't like it.

Stella was the next to head into the office, but she was decent enough to wait until the sun had risen to shine some of the sky rise buildings. Her heels clicked quietly on the floor as she first headed to her husband's office, finding him with his head down on the desk before her gaze went over to the office next to his.

She looked in the office next to her husband's and sighed. The familiar face that was lit up by the desk lamp belonged to none other then Danny Messer. She shook her head as she looked at her husband who was still asleep on his desk. "Hey you. Wake up." She tapped his shoulder and let out a giggle as he groggily sat up. Mac blinked a few times, trying to get his eyes to focus.

"Mmm. Hey. Coffee?" Mac looked at Stella, sleep still filling his voice as he spoke.

Stella placed a cup of coffee in front of him and smiled. "So, what's Danny doing here? Thought he called in 'sick' again."

"That's what I thought too, apparently. But, I guess things don't change," he said, picking up the coffee before bringing her into his lap.

"No, they don't. I just wish he'd reach out to Lucy, though. She needs him more than ever," Stella said softly.

He nodded slowly, knowing what it was like to be in Danny's position. "Don't we all?" His voice was quiet as he watched more people come into the lab. It was going to be a busy day.

Flack wandered into the lab, wanting to see if there was any new information on the case but the sight of Danny caught him off guard and he wandered into his friend's office. "Yo. Danny boy. How's things?" He sat down in the chair across from Danny's desk and Danny looked up at Flack.

"Hey." His voice was broken and sad as he spoke. He hadn't spoke to Flack in a while, hell, he hadn't spoke to anyone in a while. "Things are...yeah.. let's not go there."

Flack shook his head, wanting to go there. "So...you see Lucy lately?"

Lucy. That was a sore subject for Danny. He loved his little girl more then anything but he couldn't be a father. Lindsay left, not wanting to be a mother so obviously in his mind, he had done something wrong and he couldn't be a father because of it. "Nope." He left it at that, hoping no one would rip his head off for that.

They both turned when a beautiful brunette walked up to the door for Mac's office and they immediately scrambled to go after her, Danny beating Flack to open the glass door. She shook her head then said "thank you" in a hoarse voice before stepping into the office of the head of the crime lab. Danny and Flack followed her and Stella gave them a curious eyebrow before turning to the woman. "Who are you?"

"My name is Detective Erin Lindsay of the Chicago Police Department. I believe that he and," she said, pointing at Mac. "I spoke on the phone the other day about the case that came up."

"Oh, right," Mac said, standing up just after Stella did to extend a hand toward her.

Danny stood rooted to the spot. _So this was the face behind the woman I've been talking to?_ he thought to himself.

**Author's Note:** So, this concludes the third chapter, which I hope that you all enjoyed. The next chapter will include:

~ Danny & Erin conversation  
>~ More case stuff<br>~ Beckett & Hank finally meet


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

**New York**

Danny stood there, speechless as he stared at the back of Erin Lindsay's head. This was the face behind those instant messages. He started to open his mouth before he shut it again. He knew he was going to say something stupid so he turned to walk out of the office, but not before Mac yelled at him to stay.

"Um hi, I'm Detective Danny Messer." He extended his hand towards Erin who stood there just as shocked as Danny was.

"I'm Detective Erin Lindsay. It's nice to meet you." She shook his hand, a fake smile plastered on her face as she tried to not run from this again.

"It's good that you're here, Detective Lindsay, because we'll need to arrange a sit-down with your boss in Intelligence," Mac said, interrupting the brief introductions between Danny and Erin.

"Yes, well, Hank has to take care of some family things before he can get here, but he should be here tomorrow at the latest," Erin told the C.S.I. detective.

Mac nodded in response and pulled the case file out. "So this is what we have so far if you want to go over it."

Erin took the case file in her hand and gave a weak smile. "Of course; I'll go over it tonight."

"When your boss gets to town, have him stop by here first," Mac told Erin.

She nodded in acknowledgement. "I will. Have a nice day, Detective Taylor." Erin then turned and left the head of the C.S.I. unit's office, heading down the hall.

Danny stood there, watching Erin walk off. He was pretty sure he was in some kind of daydream, that this wasn't happening at all. Pulling his phone out of his pocket, he dialed the number that he had for Abby and listened to it ring two times before she answered, "Hello?"

"Hey, Abby, it's me. Is it okay if I come over for dinner tonight?"

"Of course you can, Danny. You're welcome anytime," Abby replied.

"Awesome. Is Lucy going to be there?" Danny ducked out of his office, making his way down the stairs as he spoke.

"Yeah, why do you ask?" Abby questioned, worried he wouldn't come over because his daughter.

"No reason. I just wanted her to be there." He hung up, walking out of the building, going to find lunch.

Abby glanced at her phone after Danny had ended the call; a little perplexed by his odd request but didn't think about it as she turned her attention to the baby monitor when it crackled from the kitchen counter top. Ellie had been her room giggling, awake from her nap. Abby walked up to the toddler's room, a bright smile on her face. "Hey, baby girl. You awake?" She picked Ellie up out of the crib only to step on a toy. "God..." Abby let her voice trail off before she could complete what she was going to say, remember she was holding a child.

"Mommy, you 'most say bad word," Ellie said, giving her mother a stern look.

"I did, but I stopped myself, baby girl," Abby said, reaching up to tweak Ellie's nose in a gentle manner.

Danny had made his way back from lunch and Flack had wandered to the lab, once again with Kate Beckett, close on his tail. Flack gave the other detective a small glare as Danny laughed at the scene.

"Hmm, should I tell Jess you have a new girlfriend?" Danny stuck his tongue out at Flack who punched Danny in the arm.

"Shut the hell up, Messer." Flack gave a smile to Kate, who was in the process of walking away from the two men who thought they were children. "What about you, D? Should I be worried about you and a certain brunette that came to see Mac earlier?"

"Nah, it's nothin'," Danny replied.

Flack shook his head, knowing that Danny was lying because he had been just as freaked out the first time he and Lindsay met. Mac stuck his head out of his office and looked at the two. "Hey, Flack. You want an update?"

"Yeah, what have you got?" Flack asked as he and Kate walked into Mac's office.

"Just got this fax from the Chicago P.D. 21st District," Mac replied as he held out a fax to the female detective.

Kate looked over the fax, before handing it back. "Okay, yeah." She wasn't quite sure how to respond to it, because frankly, she was kind of mad that they were able to have a witness who gave them a sketch and they didn't. "If you don't mind, can you make a copy of that so I tack it up on my white board?"

"Take that one. We got another copy, we just had to get them to send one for your district," Mac said, handing it back to her.

"Thanks." Kate said, taking the fax from Mac.

Flack looked up from where he had been sitting and shook his head. "So, you have anything important to tell me or can I go back to harassing Danny?"

"Leave him alone, Don. Would you want him doing the same to you if it involved you and Jess? No. So leave him be," Mac said, giving the younger detective a stern look.

"Fine, fine," Flack said with a shake of his head. He was so glad that he had Jess in his life. She gave him so many reasons to come home to her smiling face or her cooking, which she admonished him about eating before it was actually ready.

Kate shook her head at the antics of the other detective, suppressing a laugh as she did, as it made her think of Castle, Ryan, and Esposito and their daily antics. Especially, now that she and Castle were engaged, he was subject to a lot of teasing.

Speaking of Castle. Kate got out her phone when she heard it chirp and chuckled to herself when she saw the photo text message her fiancée had just sent her.

**In Chicago**  
>Officer Sean Roman walked into the one bar he was sure that no one would find him at, his eyes going wide in shock when he saw the young woman from earlier at the police station with a beautiful woman. They seemed to be in heavy conversation, but Roman went to sit down at the bar to give them privacy.<p>

Roman kept eying the pair as they talked. Hoping he wasn't noticed at all. He needed a break, one from the case, from work, from everything. So he sat there, drinking his beer, eying the two women at the table. "Hey, buddy," he heard the bartender say. "Take a picture. It lasts longer."

"Sorry, man," Roman was quick to apologize. "Who are they?"

"The beautiful woman is my younger sister and the girl she's talkin' to is my niece," the bartender told him then held out a hand. "Ryan Callaghan, nice to meet ya."

"Sean Roman. Nice to meet you too," Sean said, shaking the other guy's hand.

Ryan smiled at Sean, and shook his hand. "So, can I get you another beer or what?"

"Yeah, that would be nice. Sorry if I'm eavesdropping," Sean said with nod of his head over to the mother and daughter still conversing.

"It's cool, Roman. That's Jenna and her daughter Caitlin."

He nodded in acknowledgment to their names, not wanting to tell Ryan about seeing the younger woman at the police station earlier. "So...How are you today?" Roman asked Ryan, trying to make small talk.

"Things would be better if Cait hadn't witnessed a murder," the woman said with a scowl as she moved up to the bar, standing next to Sean. "Why is a cop here, Ryan? Tellin' secrets?"

"Jen, that's not fair," Ryan replied, trying to keep his jaw from locking in anger.

"No, what's not fair is you getting all chummy with Reno 9-1-1!" his sister yelled.

Ryan looked at his sister and back at Roman who had a kind of panicked look on his face. "Jen, you need to stop, please. You are taking this too far again." His voice was filled with anger and stress as his sister stormed away. He looked at the officer in front of him and sighed. "I'm sorry 'bout her. She overreacts a lot."

Roman shrugged and nodded. "It's okay. I'm used to it."

"I've tried to tell her time and time again that we're all good people, but somehow, she doesn't believe me," Ryan said.

"Good people?" Sean asked.

"Yeah, good people. I used to be a volunteer firefighter and Jen hated it. She's convinced everyone who works for the public good is corrupted. Not totally sure about that," Ryan said, sighing at his sister's thoughts on law enforcement and rescue workers.

"Why didn't you purse being a firefighter? I've got some friends I could talk to for you," Sean suggested.

"Nah, that's alright. I tried it, and it wasn't for me," Ryan replied.

Sean nodded his head before taking another drink of his beer. "So, you like being a bartender?" He asked, as another couple came walking in.

"Give me one second." Ryan walked off to meet the couple at where they had sat at the bar.

Just as he was getting ready to serve them, bullets started flying and Sean hustled the couple to the floor as Ryan dropped down to his stomach on the other side of the bar.

Looking over his shoulder towards Ryan's sister and niece, he saw the young girl crying and saw the older woman bleeding out. Crawling over towards the pair, he looked around to make sure everyone else was okay. "Momma, don't leave me, please," Caitlin sobbed as she gripped her mother's hand.

"Caitlin," Sean said to get her attention. She looked up at him. "Can you do something for me?" She nodded. "Keep pressure on your mother's wound, okay?"

"Okay," she said with tears streaking down her cheeks and took the cloth from his hands to push it against her mother's side.

"Hey everyone okay over there, Ryan?" He yelled as he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket.

"Yeah, we're all good. Everyone okay over there?" Ryan yelled back, but got his answer as Sean recited his badge number to a dispatcher.

**Author's Note:** So, there's the beginning of some drama. I hope that you enjoyed it and come back for the next chapter!


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

**New York**

"You did what!?" Hank yelled through the phone. Sean held his away from his ear.

"Sir, with all due respect, I am not stupid. I know what I did, but I helped save a life. That life was the mother of our witness to the one shooting that we're tryin' to get information on for our case," Sean told his sometimes boss.

"That doesn't matter! You still got close to them and nearly got Ms. Callaghan killed!" Hank yelled.

"Except that I didn't, sir. She is in the hospital now because she's gonna be okay," Sean tried to reason.

"You know what? You've got a smart mouth, kid. So, here's what you're gonna do. You're gonna stand guard outside of Jennifer Callaghan's room and, no matter what, you are to not let **anyone** in that isn't supposed to be," Hank told him before hanging up.

It was taking everything in Hank to throw the cell phone across the room. He was beyond pissed off, even though he knew he would do him no good. Walking into the precinct, he gave a forced smiled towards Erin who made her way towards her boss.

"Hey, is everything okay? Who screwed up this time?" she asked, not really wanting to know the answer to the last question because she already had a feeling she knew the answer.

"That kid Roman," Hank replied. "Nearly got himself and a civilian killed, not to mention the fact that that same civilian is the mother of our number one witness."

Erin sighed, shaking her head. Roman. He was a smart ass, and while she found it funny, Hank did not. "How did he manage that one?"

"He said that he'd been talkin' to the witness' uncle, who's the owner of Callaghan's Bar & Grill when bullets started flying," Hank replied.

Erin nodded, trying to hold back laughter. She had been there once and for whatever reason she found this situation funny. Not that fact that someone had gotten hurt, just Hank's anger at the situation. "Something's got you in a good mood," Hank commented, forgetting his anger for a little bit.

"What? Me? No, no, no. I'm not in a good mood. I'm just trying to keep you from exploding from anger," she said, dodging the subject.

Shaking his head, he looked at the younger detective. "Hmm, I'm sure," he muttered, rolling his eyes.

_If he knew the real reason why I was in such a good mood, I'd be in deep shit,_ she thought to herself.

The duo walked into the crime lab, Erin flashing a small smile towards Danny who returned the smile. Hank shook his head at the two, putting two and two together. "Detective Taylor, this is my boss, Hank Voight," Erin said, getting Mac's attention.

Mac turned his attention from talking to Adam and Flack when she said that and gave him a nod. "Sergeant Voight, it's nice to finally meet you," he said, holding out one hand for Hank to shake.

Hank shook his hand, giving a small nod before turning to Erin. "If you don't mind, can you bring me up to speed with where you guys are on the case?" His voice filled with stress, his eyes showing the lack of sleep he had gotten the night before.

He loved being "Papa Hank" to his adult daughter's kids and his son's newborn son, but between this new case and staying up all night with a colic Nolan and Nathaniel, the older cop had gotten little to no sleep so that his daughter, Johanna and son in law Kelly and son, Justin and daughter in law Colleen could each enjoy some time to themselves. "Yeah, sure," Mac said with a nod. "I understand that one of your own was in more recent contact with the main witness?"

Hank rolled his eyes and nodded. "Yeah, but how did you hear 'bout it?" he asked, trying to find the patience to not fly back to Chicago and kill Roman.

"Obviously you just did, from the way your body language was speaking," Mac said with a slight smirk.

Erin rolled her eyes, shaking her head at the two. "Yeah, he did," she piped up from the corner of the office.

"You're lucky that I like you," Hank said, wagging his finger at her.

Erin laughed, shaking her head. "I am. But yes, Detective Taylor, Officer Roman did have contact with a prime witness unintentionally."

Mac nodded. "Is the witness' mother going to be okay?"

Erin looked over at Hank, who nodded. "Yeah, she will be. Daughter's worried 'bout her, though," Hank responded.

Mac gave a weak smile. "Well. She has every right to be worried," he said as he went to dig through the case file that sat on his desk.

**In Chicago**  
>He was restless. How could he sit here and do nothing but be a guard when he could've been out on patrol with his partner? It's because Henry "Hank" Voight was not an easy boss to work with, but everyone got along with him and tolerated him. Running a hand through his short blonde hair, Sean Roman let out an unsteady breath. He glanced up with the feel of someone's hand clapping down onto his shoulder and saw the bartender, Ryan. "Hey, is she doin' okay?"<p>

"Doc says she made it through the surgery just fine, but has a long road of recovery ahead of her," Ryan replied. "Go home, man."

"I can't. Boss wants me to stay and guard the room," Sean told him.

Ryan shook his head, knowing full well that Sean's boss hadn't taken lightly to what had happened. Then he pulled Sean out of his sister's line of vision to the outside of the hospital room and pulled his coat aside to reveal his badge. "I work over with the Special Victims Unit, the Chicago branch," he revealed. "Not even my Pop knows. He thinks I'm just a bartender."

Sean gave him a confused look. Why wouldn't he tell his family that? Sean sighed, raising an eyebrow. "Why wouldn't you tell anyone? I mean, I get how you wouldn't want your family in danger but...still," he said, hoping that Ryan didn't take it the wrong way.

"It's not that I wouldn't want Pop to know, but as the son, daughter, brother and sister of criminals? We decided to break away from that and do our own thing, so it broke Pop's heart when we chose to go into law enforcement," Ryan said.

Sean nodded; kind of understanding where Ryan was coming from. "That makes sense," he said, trying really hard to make sense the situation. What did Ryan mean by 'coming from a family of criminals'? Sean wasn't going to ask though, he felt like he'd be pressing for too much information.

**Back in New York**  
>Danny knocked on the door to the loft apartment that belonged to Adam and Abby then stood back and nervously waited for either of them to answer the door. Abby answered the door, Ellie on her hip giggling away. "Hey, Danny," she said, letting Danny walk into the apartment. Taylor Swift could be clearly heard from the Lucy's bedroom, and Danny shook his head at his daughter.<p>

"Lucy! Your dad's here; come and say hi!" Adam yelled before turning to Danny. "Hey, man. How's it goin'?" he asked, shaking Danny's hand.

"It's goin' great, man," Danny replied, shaking Adam's hand in return before a small body was pushing its way between the pair and hugging the former of the two men's waist. "Hey, Lucy Goose, how's it going?"

"I knew you'd come around, Dad. I just knew it," Lucy replied.

"Oh yeah, and how did you know that?" Danny asked as he picked his daughter up and carried her into the apartment, closing the door behind him.

"'Cause you know I'm smart, Dad!" Lucy smiled, as she tried to get herself free from her father's grip. "Dad, I'm nine! I don't need you to carry me!" She laughed as she fell to the ground, her hair covering her face.

Danny let out giggle as Lucy fell to the ground. "And when did you get so big and so smart?" he asked as the nine year old hugged him once again.

"I've always been this smart and big! Uncle Adam says I'm smart just like you and momma." She smiled brightly, the same smile as Lindsay which made a pang of guilt surge through Danny.

"Yeah…you are smart just like momma. I'm not that smart though," he said ruffling his daughter's hair trying to hide the guilt that he felt about Lindsay leaving.

Ellie came waddling back in just then and shook her finger at her cousin, which made all of the adults laugh, then scolded Lucy, "No fawlin' in the fwoor, Lu-Lu!"

Lucy laughed at Ellie and pulled her into her lap. "Yeah, who says I can't fall on the floor?" She poked the little girl's nose which in return makes Ellie laugh and poke Lucy's nose.

Abby looked at Danny and smiled. "So, what bring you by?" she asked, hoping that he was finally ready to be a father. It wasn't that she didn't love her niece but she also knew Lucy needed her father.

"I was hoping that we could talk about Lucy's situation. Preferably in private," Danny said. It wasn't that he didn't want to talk about this in front of Lucy, but he would talk to her about it at another time or after dinner.

Abby and Adam nodded in unison, looking at the two children who sat on the floor. "Hey, Lucy, why don't you take Ellie and go play upstairs while we talked to your dad?"

Lucy took Ellie's hand in hers and the three adults watched as they made their way up the stairs. "Danny, is everything okay?" Abby asked as she sat down on the couch.

"I know I haven't been the best father lately, with Lindsay leaving us both, but I promise to be better. If you'll let me," he added as a last resort. Danny honestly believed they wouldn't give in to what he was asking, but he did have a small glimmer of hope that he could make things better for himself and for Lucy.

Adam and Abby exchanged glances, conferring with their eyes before she turned to her former brother-in-law. "You have to be in her life for more than a few hours, Danny."

"I get that. I do. I want to devote more time to her," Danny said with a nod.

"Since you're staying for dinner, we'll start from there," Adam said, grasping his wife's hand in his and squeezing it gently before wrapping his other arm around her shoulders to pull her in close and kiss the side of her head.

Danny nodded, wishing he and Lindsay still had what Adam and Abby had. "Okay. That sounds good to me. We can go from there." He sighed, using all his might to not go running from this…from his daughter…from his family once more.

They all finally sat down to eat once dinner had finished, with Lucy sitting next to her dad and across from Abby, Ellie between them. Lucy smiled at her aunt and uncle, wondering why her dad was here. He had made it clear after Lindsay left that he didn't want much to do with her. "Daddy, why are you here?" she asked, her voice sounding like her mother's when Lindsay would ask a question. Her face mimicked that of when Danny would ask a question and he looked at the 9 year old, another pang of guilt hitting him.

"Well, sweetie…" Where did he even start? This was a whole giant mess. He sighed and looked at his daughter, the one who shared his icy blue eyes and her mother's dark hair. "Sweetie, I want to be a part of your life. I realized I was being really selfish by cutting you out of my life," he said, hoping she would accept him back into her life.

**Author's Note:** Was it good? Find out what happens when Lucy encounters Erin in the next chapter!


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**  
>Danny looked across the table at Erin, smiling at her as he tried to figure out a way to tell her that he had a daughter. He slipped a photo out of his wallet and slid it across the table to Erin and sighed. "That's my daughter, Lucy." He said, waiting for her reaction.<p>

"She's precious, Danny," Erin said, smiling at the picture of Lucy holding Ellie at Christmas.

Danny smiled as Erin looked at the Christmas picture Adam and Abby had gave him. "She is. She's my little angel." He said, guilt of him not being in her life for the past two years eating away at him slowly.

Erin smiled gently at him and saw the guilt in his eyes. "When do I get to meet her?" Her voice was quiet as she slid the picture back towards Danny, waiting for his response.

"Whenever you like," he responded, taking the photo and putting it back into his wallet. "I'll have to, uh, arrange it with Adam and Abby, but whenever you like."

"I thought she was staying with you?" she asked.

"No, uh, after Lindsay left, I didn't know what to do. And Abby had been all but helping raise her, so I knocked on their door one night and said that I couldn't be a father, so they took her in," Danny responded, glancing off into the distance as tears suddenly sprang to his eyes.

Erin reached out and took his hands into hers. "But you're ready now, aren't you?" Her voice continued to remain soft as she tugged on his hands to make him turn toward her so that he didn't have to hide the tears.

"I...I don't know." He muttered as he pulled his hands away from her and wiped the tears away. "I don't know what I am." He wanted to be a good father, he wanted to raise his daughter but he couldn't. He couldn't be the father she needed not unless she had the mother she needed.

"Danny, you do know. You want her safe, right? Then make sure that happens," Erin told him, her tone soft. "Make sure that she can finally depend on you as her father."

Danny smiled weakly, not wanting to hear the speech. "I know. I can't be the father she needs if she doesn't have a mother." He muttered before turning to grab his drink. Yes, he wanted to be the father that Lucy needed but he didn't think he could be. After all, what if he ended up like his own father?

Erin reached out and snatched the glass out of his hand carefully. "Danny, that's not true. You gave up so much for so little," she said, setting the glass aside and reaching up to frame his cheeks in her slender hands.

Danny smiled as Erin framed his cheeks and he leaned forward to kiss her. Maybe he could be a father...just maybe. He pulled back, rubbing his hands together, trying to figure out his next move. Erin and him had been talking for months...but this was the first time they had met. He knew he felt something for her, he just didn't know if it was a good or bad thing yet. "Thank you," he murmured quietly.

Erin bit down on her lower lip, a soft smile curling on her lips. Her hardened features soften when she looked at Danny, finally thinking she knew where she belonged. Danny smiled at her, thinking that maybe he could have a second chance at love and having a family. "You don't ever have to thank me. I think it's courageous to raise a little girl like Lucy on your own," she told him.

Danny shook his head, looking down at the floor. "I didn't do anything really. I just...um...I mean...Adam and Abby have done most of it."

"You're still her dad, though. You're a part of her life." Erin said this as she nods at him to keep things positive for him.

**Across Town**  
>Hank Voight shared a quick smile with Olivia Benson as the two of them click their glasses half full of bourbon – the good, classic stuff and not that newer, nasty stuff – before he took a quick sip of his drink. "How have you been, Olivia?"<p>

"I've been doing well. Raising Noah and such," Olivia said with a nod of her head of dark hair.

"Good. How's the little man doing?" He asked, a soft smile on his face. He felt like he was falling for the dark haired female in front of him but he quickly pushed that thought out of the back of his mind as he smiled at Olivia.

"He's good. He keeps asking about you," she replied.

A smile curled onto the hardened detective's face when he heard this. "Really?" There was something about her child asking about him that made his hardened heart soften.

"Of course he is. Why would you think otherwise, Hank?"

Voight shrugs. "I don't know...I just figured..."

"If it helps, every other word he's spoken has been 'Daddy'," Olivia told him. "I can't get him to stop." She chuckles. "It's ironic. I kind of thought I'd never get to have this chance, but here I am."

Hank smiled at this. "When do I get to see little man again?" He asked the smile on his face not fading.

"Whenever you want to," Olivia replied. "In fact, I can arrange for Rollins to bring him here."

He grins. "Yeah?" Maybe this would be his chance to move on after Camille's death.

Olivia looked up when there was a knock on her office door, giving Fin a smile. "What's up, Fin?"

"There's someone here asking for you," he replied.

Hank nodded when Fin looked at him. Hallie walked in, a sheepish smile on her face. "Dr. Thomas, it's nice to see you again," he said, walking over to greet her with a kiss on the cheek.

"It's Dr. Aubrey Jones for now," Hallie told him, giving him a hug in return.

Hank nodded then turned to Olivia, who blinked at him in shock. "Liv, I'd like you to meet Dr. Hallie Thomas. Or Aubrey Jones right now," Hank said.

Olivia smiled. "Nice to meet you." She smiled kindly at Hallie, the two women shaking hands.

"The same goes for you. Hank has told me good things about you," Hallie said.

"Oh? I didn't realize that you two had stayed in contact," Olivia said.

"If it hadn't been for him, I wouldn't be standing here," Hallie replied with a smile. "He helped me fake my death until they could find who'd set the fire to the clinic."

"Then who was in the clinic if you weren't?" Olivia asked. Hank had told her all about the firefighter he'd taken under his wing, and the fiance he'd lost in a fire.

"Hank here knows some great artists. They used a dummy." Hallie nodded in affirmation and Hank chuckled.

Olivia nodded slowly. "I'll have to remember that."

Hallie smiles. "I should get going. It was nice to finally put a face to the name of the woman that Hank is dating," she said before hugging Hank one more time and turning to leave the way that she'd came.

"She seems nice," Olivia mentions to Hank after the younger woman has left.

"She's one of the nicest gals I know," Hank tells his girlfriend. "Next to you, of course."

"Good comeback, Sergeant Voight," she said with a smirk. Voight just shook his head as Olivia smacked his arm.

"Boss, we've just gotten a call," Nick Amaro said from the doorway. Olivia looks up.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"New case," Amaro replied as he turns to rejoin the others.

Olivia ran a hand through her hair and let out a stressed breath as she turned to walk into the squad room, Voight following her. She looked at Finn who raised an eyebrow.

"Same M.O. as the others. School bus. Except we have three dead this time." Finn says, looking Olivia dead in the eye.

Olivia groans, nodding. "Okay. Rollins, Amaro. Take Sergeant Voight to the scene. Fin, Carisi you two are with me. We're going to interview any and all witnesses. We need to get this guy behind bars."

Amanda Rollins and Nick headed out with Hank trailing behind them while Olivia, Fin and Dominick "Sonny" Carisi Jr. went to interview witnesses. How would they catch this madman?

**Meanwhile in Chicago**...

Jay Halstead let out a breath, laying his head on his desk. "This is getting hopeless," he mumbled causing Antonio Dawson to throw a piece of paper at his head.

"This is not hopeless. We just hit a dead end." Dawson said, rolling his eyes.

"Dead ends mean no hope, man." Ruzek spoke up from his corner by Alvin Olinsky.

Alvin fixed him with a pointed glare. "It won't be a dead end if we can figure out what it all leads to." He looks over at Antonio. "You should go talk to that firefighter that Voight knows, your sister's fiance."

Antonio nods. "I'll go do that now." He grabs his jacket and heads out, going over to Firehouse 51.

Casey was sitting in his office, Gabby on his lap as they had a nice, a very nice, make out session just as Antonio knocked on the door. Casey opened the door after Gabby got up off his lap, adjusting her clothes. "What's up, Antonio?" they asked in unison, sharing a brief smile.

Antonio shook his head. "I still don't like you, Casey." He muttered, rolling his eyes.

Gabby just shook her head. "Why you here big brother?"

"Had some questions about a current case," he replied as Matt nodded his head.

**Author's Note:** What do you think Antonio has to say to Matt? Find out in the next chapter!


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**  
>To say that Gabriela Dawson was displeased was saying the least. "What do you mean, you think Hallie is alive?" she asked her brother as she paced back and forth in front of the area outside of the offices belonging to Matt and Kelly.<p>

"I know what you know, sis. That's what Voight told me," Antonio replied.

"I don't know if I trust Voight's word at this point, Antonio," Gabby told him.

"If what he says is true, we all have to find a way to make sure that whoever is behind the murders in our new case doesn't get a hold of her," Antonio said.

Gabby nodded slowly, trying to bite back an angry yell. Her fiance's ex-fiance could possibly still be alive and not that she ever wished Hallie had died...she just couldn't help but wonder what this meant for her and Matt's relationship. "So, is she in like Witness Protection?" she asked her brother.

"She is. And she's going to stay there until we can catch this guy," Antonio responded. Gabby nodded, biting down on her lip. Nope. She wasn't going to tell Matt. Not until they knew for sure that Hallie was alive and that she would be coming out of Witness Protection. "You don't have to feel threatened by her, Gab. I'm sure that she and Matt will remain friends."

"I'm not worried about that, Antonio." _But he doesn't need to know that._

Antonio gave his sister a small smile before Matt walked out. "What's going on guys?" Matt asked, pulling Gabby close to him.

"I think you should sit down for this, Casey," Antonio said.

"Why?" Matt questioned, pressing a kiss to Gabriela's head. Whatever it was they had to tell them, they could him while he was standing.

_Or don't._ Antonio nods. "Hallie is alive. But she's aware of your relationship with my sister, and has no interest in returning to Chicago," he said.

"Hallie's ...alive?" Matt said quietly.

"She is, Matt. And she's one of the few witnesses to catching our killer," Antonio replied.

Matt nods, taking all the new information in. "Hallie's...Hallie's alive?"

Antonio nods again. "Yes. She is alive." Matt just nods and rubs his neck. Hallie was alive. Did that mean the baby was alive as well? Question after question swirled through his brain as he ran his hands through his hair. "We're going to make sure that we catch the killer, Matt."

**Meanwhile in New York**

Hallie watched as her three year old son made friends with Nick and Fin before turning her attention back to Olivia. "I had just told Matt right before I was placed in Witness Protection."

"I understand completely," Olivia said with a nod. The two women watched Nathaniel as he giggled when he & Carisi exchanged high-fives.

Hallie smiled as she watched her son. This was her life. She couldn't believe it and yet here she was. "He's my entire world, Sergeant Benson." Olivia nods, taking the other woman's hand in hers and gently squeezing.

"Just like Noah is my whole life." Olivia smiles, biting her lip. Noah was her blessing in disguise. He had saved her just as she had saved him. Being a mother was all that she'd ever wanted, and saving him from that evil man known as his father had just been the start. Now that she and Hank Voight were together, she was determined to be able to balance being a mother and a girlfriend.

Hallie smiled, grinning as she watched Nate run around. That boy was the reason why she did everything from get up in the morning to going to bed at night. Olivia chuckled a bit when Fin threw the little boy up in the air, the boy's laughter filling the room. _One day. One day we'll all feel life is calm down enough to stand by our men,_ Olivia thought to herself.

**In Chicago**

Gabby lets out a scream, kicking at her captor. The captor, in a voice muffled by the ski mask he wore, ignored her screaming and kicking then tells her, "This is payback for what your brother did to me."

"What exactly might that be?" She questioned, trying to ignore the bleeding. _You'll be okay, baby. Just hang on._

"Your brother put my son into prison for doing what he felt was right to protect what happened to me and his mother," her captor replied.

Gabby shakes her head. "Whatever my brother did to your son was justified." She manages to mumble out before her eyes flutter shut.

Her captor smirked as she drifted into unconsciousness. _Perfect. My plan is finally working._ He picked Gabby up as if she weighed nothing more than a feather and carried her toward the van he had waiting for him.

Matt called her cell phone, several times before blowing out breath. _Come on, Gabs, pick up._ It went straight to voice mail so he pressed "End" and dialed the number for Antonio. Antonio blew out a breath as he answered. "Matt. What can I do for you?" He asked, biting his lip.

"Have you heard from Gabby at all? She isn't answering her phone, and I'm starting to worry," Matt responded. Antonio frowned. Why wouldn't his sister answer her phone? The only time she did that was when she needed some time to herself but Antonio knew something was wrong when he too called her phone, using the land line to do so.

Gabriela's attacker answered this time, a sly smirk on his face. "Antonio Dawson." He muttered as he watched Gabby continue to bleed.

"Who is this?" Antonio demanded. "Where is my sister?"

The attacker only smirks further. "If you want your sister, you have to play by MY rules or you won't get to see her ever again," he said before hanging up.

Antonio kicks his desk, letting out scream. "Damn it!" He had to find a way to save to Gabby

**Meanwhile in New York**

Jess stared Flack straight in the eye, Flack knowing not to mess with her. "Get your buddies from the 21st on the phone."

"Why?" He asked, only slightly curious. He had to at least know why he was calling Kate Beckett.

"Because a C.F.D. paramedic has gone missing and she may be in New York. It may be tied in with the case."

He nodded and called Kate Beckett the latter whom was less then amused by the call. "Detective Beckett."

"It's Don Flack. We have a little bit of a problem," he explained.

"What kind of problem?" Kate demanded. Flack winced at the tone, uncertain of how he could tell her what was going on. "Flack, this isn't the time to play games. What the hell is going on?"

"A C.F.D. paramedic is missing. It could be related to the case," he says quickly before hanging up.

Kate blew out a breath, looking at Kevin and Esposito. "We have a C.F.D. medic missing."

"Damn. How long has she been missing?" Kevin asked as the three of them left the precinct to head toward the C.S.I. crime lab.

"Don't know," she responded as she followed them. This was going to be one hell of a case.

**In Oklahoma City, Oklahoma**

"But why me? Why didn't they ask for Henry?" Rhetta Rodriguez stars at Captain Kate Perry. Kate gave her a stern look.

"Because they asked for you. I don't know why," Kate responded. "I've arranged for you and Mae to stay with an old friend of mine in Chicago; name is Hank Voight. He's in New York for the same case we're working on, but his son or daughter will let you in and give you a spare key."

Rhetta gulped and nodded. What if she ran into Alvin Olinsky? No...Chicago was a big place. Much bigger then Oklahoma City. She probably wouldn't even see him. "I'll fly out first thing in the morning, ma'am," Rhetta said with a nod.

Kate nodded back. She knew Rhetta wasn't fond of big cities but this was something that had to be done. In the morning, Rhetta kissed her daughter Mae's head. "You be good for your father, okay? And your Aunt Grace," she told the teenager.

"I will, Mom! Go, get out of here," Mae said with a roll of her eyes, nudging her mother toward the door to get her off to the airport.

Rhetta let out a breath. What if she had to see Alvin?

**Author's Note:** And this is a good place to end things! The next chapter will begin where this one left off, with more drama & excitement to come!


End file.
